Needless to say, I was very surprised that Working Designs decided to go ahead and release an aging game on a near dead system (never mind the recent release of the Playstation 2). And yes, despite popular opinion, this game is NOT NEW. Because of it's age and the ultra "cool" eye candy that more recent RPG games have to offer, this game will most assuredly, once again, become a cult classic.

Unlike many games, this game actually has a history. Every one knows that the SEGA CD was a major failure in terms of sales. But what most people don't realize is that the original Lunar was a raging success. Several hundred thousand SEGA CD's have been sold in Japan, while the same number plus 50,000 Lunar games have been sold. The same holds true in the US as well. What that means is that every single person who bought a SEGA CD also has one or more copies of the game. Lunar 2 wasn't quite as successful but still managed to hit the 1:1 ratio of owners. And I'm sure that many people, including myself, bought the SEGA CD ... based solely on owning the Lunar games.

So why buy the PSX version of the games? Easy, despite the fact that the game is based on traditional sprite based characters, the game actually has a STORY. One of the things that game companies today are suffering from is the attempt to create a game with so much eye candy with 3D polygon graphics, Pre-rendered backgrounds, and special effects that the story literally disappears. Worse still, is that some games attempt to make up for this by adding so much dialog that even an "auto fire" feature on controllers wouldn't get through it all before you return from a trip to the store with a new game. However, Lunar is perfect. The story unfolds at a perfect pace, not too slow and not too fast. Video is a reward and not used as "filler" to help the story along. the only thing that could cripple this game is the lack of 3D polygons or full use of SGI pre-rendered backgrounds. But with a story like Lunar's, who needs the eye candy?

So I guess we get to the story. One thousand years after Lunar: Silver Star takes place. Evil has crept across the land again (Or has it? Is there a plot twist there?), now it is up to Hiro and Ruby to help a young girl to contact Athena (Who actually appears in the first game as well under a different name. Now really! I can't spoil that plot twist for you, can I?) to help rid the land of the evil Zophar. In their many adventures (or would that be misadventures?) your band of character meets and joins up with a myriad of characters including Lucia, who is innocent to the things around her. Lemina, who is pretty much a selfish, greedy brat who wields powerful magic. Jean, who is a beautiful dancer who has a deadly battle tactic. Ronfar, who is pretty much a .... (Pay attention to his innuendoes) and Nall, who . . . um . . whoops, Ha ha. Another branching plot line.

With twice as many plot twists as the original the game certainly feels very long. And with good reason. Play through the first time. And the game let's you think you "beat" it. Reload the saved file and you have to play through again, backwards (more or less)! This game is lovable and a classic. The entire series harbors many secrets both in game and real world. Do the research and you'll be surprised. I was.

I would not be very surprised if this game fails. I've shown this game to people who never played the original and all I got was a "ho hum" response. When I showed the same person the garbage that other companies put out with zero story and tons of eye candy they instantly want to borrow the game. Trust me, buy or at least rent the game. The sprite based characters won't be fantastic but you'll like the story as it unfolds. You'll be surprised.

Tigerpomme







18 of 18 found the following review helpful:


One of the best RPG stories ever told.  Apr 09, 2001 By Lord Chimp
The story of Eternal Blue is pure classic. It's the simple story of a brash adventurer who falls for an enigmatic girl with a mission. Quite simple, but monolithic nonetheless. Unlike many current RPGs, the simple charm of the love story is not buried under reams of dross. Yes, an epic adventure unfolds, but Eternal Blue never loses sight of its greatest strengths: its characters, simple romance, and a sense of lighthearted adventure. Working Designs knows what they are doing: their script is witty and proficient, underscoring unique personalities and heightening the emotional impact of any given scene. The villains are more interesting this time around, the plot hardly ever runs off track, and there's a few plot twists you'll never expect.

For those who didn't experience this wonderful story in the Sega CD days, you owe it to yourself to play it through. It ranks among the greatest stories ever, and in many ways is surpasses the original telling (which had too much humor for its own good).

The graphics are very 16-bit, so the game lacks graphical titillation. (The FMV is gorgeous, though.) The gameplay, likewise, is archaic, and actually a step down from the Sega CD original. The magic system, which was one of the greatest merits of the original, has been simplified to the point of mindlessness, which is ridiculous and dumb. Actually, the gameplay seems more tiring than I remembered, the dungeons being particularly exhausting. The game is a little tougher though, which creates a sense of urgency not often associated with many RPGs these days.

While the gameplay hasn't aged well, the story is as timeless as they come, and that makes the game worth playing.

All the extras are a nice treat as well. I personally found the "Making Of Lunar 2" CD very interesting, and while I have no use for the amulet or the character standees, they are nice bonuses. The map is a nifty keepsake, and the full soundtrack is great. I don't listen to the soundtrack, because I don't really enjoy the Lunar music outside the context of the game, but I appreciate the gesture, and there are still several good tunes included (Lemina's theme is fookin' catchy). Hopefully other publishers will include soundtracks with their games in the future.

15 of 17 found the following review helpful:


Dragonmaster Viper Review  Jun 09, 2000
I must say Working Designs has done it again! Lunar 2 is definitely a classic game that no household should do without. I've played Lunar SSS Complete and that game was a definite masterpiece. The storyline was excellent, the characters were well drawn, the music soundtrack of the game was brilliant, and most importantly the game play itself was top notch. Working Designs does excellent RPG games. The packaging of the game was a great idea and the artwork of the casing was really cool. I must say Lunar 2 is a must have type game. For those thats played Lunar SSS...your gonna love this game just as much as you loved the previous title. For those that hasn't played Lunar SSS...your in for a good treat. I personally recommend this game to everyone. I feel this game will blow away the minds of those who don't even like RPGs. Congradulations Working Designs...you've done it again!

11 of 12 found the following review helpful:


Less random fighting, more of the engaging story  Jan 16, 2001 By Mark E. Summers "Gamekrazy"
I'm going to start off with my only real complaint about this game, namely the leveling up factor, where you have to fight untold monsters, one after another, to build up your levels so you don't get your head handed to you too badly in the boss fights. I spent two hours minimum in most dungeons, woods, etc. fighting monsters at about evey ten steps my character took just to get strong enough not to get destroyed by the bosses, and even then, most of the time it was a close thing. This was an annoyance to the extreme, and knocked one star off my rating of this otherwise well done game. It's an exercise in futility having to leave an area to heal yourself when you're almost dead just to come back and have to fight the same monsters over again just to try to get powerful enough, I just don't understand the thinking behind it.

Graphics wise, especially the cut scenes that drive the story, the game was really done well. A lot of people think technology means everything has to always be better, and only want games with lots of eye candy. Myself, I don't think every game needs to set a new standard in technology, completely rewriting the book. In fact, I like the 2d type effect of looking down at the characters, and the little side pictures of them they bring up when a character is talking in game. One of my favorites of this type of genre was Magic Knight: Rayearth for the Sega Saturn. I even like to dig out my nintendo once in a while to play some of them games. If a game is done well, and draws me into its story, or entertains me, it doesn't have to be wrapped up in pretty bows. In fact, most pretty bows are hiding some of the most awful games made, they just disguise the fact that there's nothing to them.

The story in Lunar 2 is that Lucia, a girl from the Blue Star, has come to Lunar on a special mission. She was supposed to sleep until the Blue Star was ready for habitation, and then move the people from Lunar to the Blue Star to live. However, she is woken early, to discover that Zophar, an evil being of nearly infinite power, is plotting a return, and plans to take over Lunar. Joining up with Hiro, the hero of the game, she sets out to find Althena, the goddess of the Blue Star, to join forces with her to stop Zophar. This is the main line of the story, but there are many other threads involved as Hiro meets up with other people, and they join his party. Each of these characters have their own motivations, stories to tell, and problems to work out, adding to the fun, and to the overall mission.

The voice overs were all done very well, although the ones for Zophar and Ghaleon sometimes go a little over the top. Other than them, the rest fit their characters very well, and I didn't have any complaints along those lines.

The interesting thing is that the end of the game isn't actually the end of the game. After beating Zophar and heading home, and saving the game, there is still more that you can do. You get your band back together, pick up a Rememberizer after helping another character, and can then unlock all the movie segments you saw during the course of the game by visiting the areas where the movies took place. Plus, finishing the game opens up a few areas you previously weren't able to get to, to fight your way through and acquire a few more items necessary to get to the actual end of the game. So, for those of you who are ready to breathe a sigh of relief once you make that epilogue save, there's still more work to be done, fights to get through, and a final ending to see, a little more satisfying than the one you've already viewed. I hope you get there.

16 of 19 found the following review helpful:


Sick old school  Sep 18, 2000
I had this game way back in the day on the Sega CD Rom. I did like the first one better, but this is one sick game. The story is more in depth than the first one, and the characters backgrounds are much more developed. This is one of the best RPG's ever made and I think it blows Final Fantasy 8 away and is almost as good as ff7. This game is well worth the money because I have beat this game several times and I still have fun doing it, and I usually hate going through a game the second time.

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